Amnesty International Nigeria has raised a critical alarm, stating that a wave of mass abductions and pervasive insecurity is causing a severe reversal of educational progress in northern Nigeria.
The organization's Country Director, Isa Sanusi, warned that thousands of children are being withdrawn from school, undoing years of effort to improve enrollment rates in the historically educationally disadvantaged region.
Sanusi stated that the recent "pattern of abductions in schools" has set a "very dangerous precedent."
"A lot of progress was made in terms of the level of enrollment of children in schools," Sanusi said.
"Unfortunately, recent events have shown that... many, many thousands of children have been withdrawn and have stopped going to school as a result of that."
He expressed deep concern over the long-term impact, noting that many schools closed due to attacks since 2014 have never reopened.
This, he said, threatens the future of an entire generation.
"We are deeply concerned as an organization that a whole generation of girls and boys in the north will completely miss out on education," Sanusi stated, describing the potential outcome as a "calamity" for both the northern region and the entire country.
Amnesty International is calling on the Nigerian authorities to make restoring safety their top priority.
The organization argues that securing rural communities is a prerequisite for securing schools, and that without drastic action, education will remain one of the biggest casualties of the ongoing insecurity crisis.
